


A Darkness - Ending 2: Eternity

by big_slug



Series: A Darkness [3]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Hopeful Ending, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-28
Updated: 2020-02-28
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:46:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22933525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/big_slug/pseuds/big_slug
Summary: An alternative ending to 'A Darkness'.
Relationships: Will Byers/Mike Wheeler
Series: A Darkness [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1647358
Comments: 13
Kudos: 26





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bigcrofty](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bigcrofty/gifts), [YarravilleEmma](https://archiveofourown.org/users/YarravilleEmma/gifts).



> I do care. That's all I have to say.

„Easy there. Easy. I‘ve got you.“

„You-“ Will‘s knees had given in, and there wasn‘t even enough strength left in him to try and soften the fall - Mike caught him, though, and picked him up. Instinctively, Will threw his arms around his friend‘s neck. „You‘re real?“

„I am real.“ Mike whispered. „I promise I am. I‘ve got you.“ He sat down on the basement couch, allowed Will to sit in his lap.

Will sobbed his relief into Mike‘s shoulder. „Am I dreaming about you again?“

„No. And you‘ve never dreamed about me. Or... maybe you have, I wouldn‘t know, but when you saw me in your room, I was... actually there. It‘s hard to explain. You‘re awake now, that‘s what matters.“

It was all still so very dark around them, and without Mike here, holding him, Will wouldn‘t know where he was. „W-What happened to the house? It‘s so-“

„It‘s old.“ Mike said tonelessly. „It‘s falling apart. No one has lived here for decades, and they might demolish it soon. You just saw what I wanted you to see, Will. Now I don‘t have to deceive you anymore. I‘m...“ His voice broke in a way that left Will‘s heart aching. „I‘m so proud of you. And I‘m sorry. You‘ve suffered so much, and now this-“

Will could feel the wetness of his own blood on his back, but not much else. „It doesn‘t even hurt, Mike. I‘m okay, really. I‘m just so...“

„Weak?“ Mike said. „Tired? You‘re feeling like you‘re already far away from yourself and from this world. Can you hear the echo already?“

„Y-Yes.“ Will sniffed. Mike‘s voice, further away than usual, did echo in his head. „Mike, what‘s happening to me?“

A wave of heat rolled through the basement; It was like opening an oven, being hit with the hot air, unable to breathe for a second or two. When it was over, the lights flickered to life. All these colorful fairy lights Mike had put up. His face, tinged in purple, showed decades, centuries of grief. „You‘re changing, Will. I‘m changing you.“

„Changing... I‘m changing...“ Will said to himself. It felt more like slipping away, being removed from his body and the world around him. A frightening idea, but he trusted Mike. „I‘m bleeding, aren‘t I? Is this-“ he coughed, but instead of shying away, Mike only held him closer. „It‘s just blood loss making me see things.“

„No... No, Will, really. I‘ve made a decision for you. I‘ve-“ Mike‘s hot tears dripped into Will‘s hair as he went on in a hoarse voice. „I‘ve decided to damn you. If I stop now, that‘d kill you, but you have to understand! You have to!“

„I don‘t... understand... a thing...“ Will said weakly. Speaking meant great effort now, and so did trying to move at all.

„If you let me, I could tell you a story. Something I wrote down a long time ago, when I was beginning to forget. It‘s a story that I‘ve lived once, if that makes sense to you.“

Will nuzzled his faze into Mike‘s shoulder, but he didn‘t close his eyes. A part of him was afraid he would never open them again if he did. „I‘m listening.“

Mike took a second to pull himself together. He chose his words wisely, and spoke clearly. „This story is about a boy. And it feels weird telling it, because I know I was him once. But I don‘t remember being him. This was all so, so long ago. He was about your age, maybe a little older when... things happened.. He had parents, at least one sister, maybe more siblings. I‘d already forgotten when I wrote this down. And he had a name, but I‘ve forgotten that too.“

There was a pause, and Will used it. „You‘ve... forgotten your name?“

„I‘ve had many names over the years, Will. And maybe you‘ll change yours too, from time to time. Now, the boy lived in a village, with his entire family in a house with just one room. It was cold, and dirty, and people just worked from sunrise to sunset. Work was their life. There was nothing else to do but to survive, and for the most part, they didn‘t know or care about the world around them. Until news came from the coast that there had been fighting. Those first battles in Massachusetts, you‘ve probably learned about it in School. And then a man came with a list, and he said any man who wanted to fight the British should just sign. It seemed like an adventure to the boy. He signed his name, thinking they‘d give him a gun. But all he got was a drum.“

During a few moments of silence, Mike used two fingers to tap a rhythm on Will‘s shoulder. His gaze seemed to wander off into the distance.

„It‘s odd that I still remember the codes, and nothing else. War is loud, you know. Guns, cannons, screams... The officers would give out orders to the drummers, and the drummers would let the soldiers know. It wasn‘t much easier than life in his village, but at least the boy got a pair of boots and a hat. And meat rations. But people get hurt in the war. A cannonball, a splinter, and then the boy was holding his guts in his hands. That‘s one of the things I‘m glad I don‘t remember.“

Will believed every word. Perhaps it was just his mind slipping away, slipping towards sleep, or whatever was waiting for him, but he could see no reason not to believe. „Did you change too?“ he asked his friend.

Mike swallowed. His adam‘s apple bobbed, which Will could feel against his cheek. „Yes. The boy was dying, there in a tent half a mile from the battlefield. A man came to him, right when he was on the brink of death.“

„Who was he?“

„Someone... evil. I only realized how evil exactly when I got older, and maybe a little wiser. But the boy was given the choice; Live, or die. What would you have done? The man never told him what life would be like, after. The boy was getting weaker and weaker. Just like you are now. There was an echo, and this wonderful warmth. Despite everything the man had told him, he thought he would die if he fell asleep. But he woke up again, and his wound was beginning to heal. Only he learned that-“ For the first time during his story, Mike broke off. There was no telling what exactly he was feeling in that moment, but when he continued, it became clear to Will.

„Two of his friends, one with a broken ankle, the other with a bullet in his shoulder, both in the same tent, had died of a fever. It was... their strength, Will. Whatever energy they had, the boy had consumed it. He had used it to heal himself. And when the man came for him again, he ran. He wanted nothing to do with this _monster_. But it had made him into a monster, too. Do you catch my meaning?“

„You‘re... turning me... into... a... monster?“ Will whispered, though the prospect of that didn‘t frighten him that much.

„Only if you promise me something.“ Mike gripped him harder now, to get a point across. „You have to promise you‘ll never turn anyone else. Promise it, Will. Promise it or I‘ll kill you.“

„What‘s... so... bad about living... forever?“ If Will had understood Mike correctly, eternal life was his fate.

„What‘s so bad about it...“ Mike sneered. „I‘ll tell you what. I can‘t die, Will. I‘ve tried _so many times._ I jumped off a house and walked away. I drowned myself and woke up dry on the bank of the river. And then last year-“ Mike choked on his own words. He sobbed, and it was high and wet, so unlike the low growl his voice could become.

„What happened last year?“

„I was tired of it. I wanted to stop feeding, to stop murdering people. I found someone, you know. A group of people, a family, who said they‘d help me. This was up in Illinois, somewhere far more remote than this place. They said their ancestors had helped people like me, but then... None of them could get it right. Whatever they tried, whatever they thought would help. They put all their faith into helping me, but in the end I was just starved. So starved that I couldn‘t help it. I-“

„Mike, you don‘t have to say it. You really don‘t.“ Will understood just too well.

And still, it broke out of his friend in a wave of despair. „I killed them! All of them, Will. The father, the mother, their two children! They let me into their house because they thought they could help me die! I tried to shoot myself that night. But in the morning I woke up with all the bullets still in their chambers. And I was _hungry_. _So hungry_. I could‘ve lived two years on the amount of life I‘d consumed, but I used it all up to heal.“

There was not much strength left in Will to cry - Mike‘s utter self-loathing hit him in his core, though, twisting his innards around. „W-What... about... me...?“ he croaked. „If it‘s so bad... why... are you turning... me?“

„Because I‘m a monster, okay?“ Mike spat. „I‘m selfish. I was just so lonely, without anyone to even talk to. I never wanted to condemn anyone to this... this so-called life. I consumed the scum of the earth when I could. I wanted to feed on your father, because that‘s what I do. But when I saw you... I... I couldn‘t help myself. I needed to have you.“

„I... I know, Mike. I was lonely too. Always... so... lonely...“ Will felt like falling asleep. Maybe like dying - he wasn‘t sure if there was still a difference between the two. „I promise never to turn anyone else.“ he said, surprised by the firmness of his own voice. It was his last act of strength in this life.

„Then you can let it happen now, Will.“ Mike whispered to him. „I‘ll be here when you wake up. And... I‘ll give you a promise too.“

„What... kind... of...“

„Hush. I‘ll tell you in the morning. You should sleep now.“ And then, for the first time, Mike kissed Will. Not like the little pecks he‘d given him here and there. This was a real kiss, one that made his promise clear before he had even said it out loud.

Mike‘s warmth remained there with Will. It was there when the light went. It was there when the echo was replaced with silence. And it was still there when Will felt himself slipping away fully, taking the first step into eternity.


	2. Chapter 2

„And do we sleep in coffins?“

„Have you ever seen me sleep in a coffin?“ The monster chuckled. God, he loved this boy. This boy who was now also a monster. He loved him with all his cold, dead heart. „I think it would be wrong to call us... vampires. I don‘t like that word.“

Will giggled. „So it‘s like our very own N-word?“ He was getting stronger by the minute, but the monster knew he would need a few days of rest. So they had driven the van into a remote part of the Indiana woods, where no one would ever find them. Just a little break, because Will needed it.

„I just don‘t think it... describes us accurately. You have a lot to learn.“ The monster laid a kiss on Will‘s cheek. „As for coffins, I imagine them to be... uncomfortable. Not that this is a presidential suit, but still.“ He had long thrown an old mattress in the back of the van, that was where he usually slept, and it was big enough for two.

Will yawned. „I‘ll have the best teacher. How... how strong will I get? Are you going to teach me to do that voice-thing? And the illusions, and-“

„Will... Will...“ the monster hushed. „All in due time. It will take a while. Let me show you something.“ He pushed open the tail of the van to let some sunlight in. A human would have shivered, but the two monsters didn‘t feel the cold November air. „Sit up.“ Will complied instantly, and he let the monster pull his shirt up.

„It‘s... it‘s gone...“ he marveled. And truly, the _50_ -shaped scar on his belly was just a faint shadow now. It would be forever erased by nightfall. „Wait, does that?“ He pulled his shirt off completely.

„No. Not yet.“ The monster reached around, smoothed a palm over Will‘s back, where the deep welts were just beginning to dissolve into perfect, white skin. „You‘ll be hungry soon. But we will deal with that when it‘s time.“

„I want to test if I can-“

„Will!“ the monster cut his friend short. „Eternity is endless. We can do everything there is to do in this world and still have time to spare.“ He closed the van up again. „Let‘s start easy, okay? You‘ll feel the hunger soon. And I think there‘s someone who deserves to be wiped from the earth. Didn‘t he like to remind you that he was the one to put food on the table?“

Will needed to be touched. Someone who has never known a loving hand... that is someone starved for it, sometimes without realizing. Boy or monster, one could live for two hundred years, immortal, but still wither away without it. Will would never again know a life without it. That was the monster‘s promise to him. Because for all the horrible things he had done, the monster knew the pain of being alone. Never again.

‚ _He will hate you for this one day‘_ the voice in the monster‘s head growled. _‚He‘ll want to die just like you, and he won‘t find a way out. You‘ve cursed him._ ‘

Mike gently tugged on Will‘s shoulder to get him as close as he could. „But I don‘t want to die anymore.“ the boy whispered.

* * *

Sunny California. Too many dark months lay behind them. And they enjoyed the sun, the way the heat of it seeped through their shirts, burning the icy cold skin. They had all the time they wanted. Time for the beach, time to bathe in the warm water of the bay, completely invisible to the thousands of people swarming around them. And the nights, when they were soaking up the warmth of the sand by a small campfire.

„Write.“ Mike said one of these nights. He was always keeping pens and notebooks in his backpack. „Right now. Before you start to forget. One should never forget his roots, and maybe, in a hundred years, it‘ll be good to know where you‘re coming from.“

„I don‘t want to think about my dad...“ Will replied. „I never want to think about him again.“

It was ultimately his choice, and Mike supposed he had a few decades left before memory loss would set in. Yet, it had to be done at some point. „I want you to remember how you became what you are now. I‘ve been looking for the man who turned me. And if I can‘t kill him, I can at least hurt him. I want to bury him alive for what he did to me, but how could I if I don‘t even remember his face? So maybe someday, you‘ll want to do that to me. You deserve the chance to hate me.“

Will kissed him then, and that was good, and it didn‘t matter if it was bound to last. Maybe he would resent Mike in the future. He would hurt innocent people, because monsters couldn‘t always help it. That was what made them monsters, after all; Trying so hard to be good... trying to contain the hunger... and failing.

For now, though, there was only springtime. An awakening of powers that would last for a few months more. Will made a game of it, sneaking up to people to see when they would notice him. How strong he was getting... Mike was proud. One day, giggling like an idiot, he even managed to rid a woman of her bikini in broad daylight. Covering herself up, screaming bloody murder, she never saw him.

That was how Mike knew Will was ready. And it was time either way. The hunger was back, and soon it would turn into a threat to every living creature in a two mile radius. „How do you know she‘ll lead us to-“

„Not now, Will.“ Mike said. „One step at a time. I‘ll pick out our food, at least for now. It‘s one of the hardest things to master.“ They were walking right next to the girl, on either side of her. The smoke from her cigarette stung in Mike‘s nose - he liked to drink, had dropped the occasional tab of acid in the sixties, had a few joints too. But cigarettes? Not his thing.

The girl was stupid to smoke, he thought. She was pretty, but how long would that last? The blink of an eye could pass, and Mike and Will might find themselves watching her die of old age in a hospital bed.

They would not bother her. They were here only for the man waiting for her in her home. Mike and Will watched from the window. „You reeking bitch! Smoking again, haven‘t you?“ the guy snarled, and he struck her right across the face. Her flaming hair whipped around like a firestorm when she fell.

„She‘ll be better off without him. The mother lives here too. A good woman, just... submissive.“ Mike said lowly. He hated it when grown people allowed themselves to be victims. „His name is Neil Hargrove. Doesn‘t he look delicious?“

„Neil Hargrove...“ Will repeated. He had his fists clenched, teeth gnashed. „We‘re coming for you, Neil.“


End file.
